Her Inside Story
by Boyz
Summary: Princess Peach has become corrupt and power crazy; leave it to a girl to expose her for the blackness in her heart. Follows "Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story" How and when will she expose the princess? What if she found help in an unlikely ally to help her along the way? Rated T, just in case
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of the Mario series, only borrowing them to make an interesting story. :)**

**Kimberley is my own creation **

**Rated T just in case for the future :) **

**Don't forget to review and enjoy!**

Kimberley was always an outcast, through high school and college. However she was content with her own company and was fairly certain that she was going to be alone for the majority of her life. There was a perfectly good reason for her being alone; she didn't belong. She preferred the company of Toads. That's right, all her life she has been sneaking off and running away to the Mushroom Kingdom. Kim felt at home with her Toad friends, but never actually met the famed princess. She never wanted to. The princess seemed conceited and full of herself, portraying her image all over the kingdom as though she was a god. It was sickening and Kim had half a mind to tell the princess off, but she knew that if she revealed herself the princess wouldn't like it. So, Kim stayed in the shadows and studied her ways, which made her even more sick. Apparently, Princess Peach had some dirty secrets about coins and selling the kingdom's supply of mushrooms to neighboring kingdoms. The kingdom was richer than anyone knew, but Princess Peach made sure her lifestyle wasn't compromised. Kim knew this because she became a private investigator in both worlds. Instead of exposing the fraud that the princess was, Kim decided to wait and plant a seed of doubt in the Toads, showing them her statistics and mathematical proof that the princess was lying.

Before she had a chance to show an Toad of the lies, an outbreak of some new disease called the blorbs began overtaking the toads. At first she suspected it was a warning from Princess Peach for Kim to not to reveal anything, but then she soon learned that the princess had nothing to do with it by the urgent meeting being held at the Conference Hall in the castle. In case it was just a cover-up, Kim had some connections in the castle that helped her sneak into the Conference Hall right before the meeting occurred. She stuck to the back of the open double doors and hid in the shadows, listening to the pitter-patter of the toads' shoes on the ground. Kim silently watched the slide-show that displayed victims of the blorbs and then the toad sitting next to the podium began speaking. Kim couldn't really hear what he was saying, but a small argument between a doctor's intern and a random toad soon erupted. A star sprite, which Kim barely knew they existed, broke up the fight and calmed the both of them down.

"Well, there are patients that need my attention." the intern huffed away from the table and left. Princess Peach shook her head, as if to disapprove. _Like you're any better,_ Kim bitterly thought. The meeting continued with little blimps of information. Kim stood in the shadows and absorbed it all, especially the part where the toads who subsumed to the blorbs reported having eating a mushroom called Blorb Shroom. _Well, that's a no brainer._ Kim shook her head in the obviousness of the name. Then, her ears perked up again.

"Some toads recall getting the mushroom from a fellow in a cape in Dimple Wood." _That's all I need._ Kim peeked through the door crack and when no one was looking, she snuck out of the door.

Kim ran through the castle, passing numerous toads and even a few that she knew. But she had no time to chat. Of course she knew of Mario and his little brother, Luigi, but they were wrapped around Princess Peach's fingers and would do anything for her. She could use the blorbs as leverage over her loyal toads if she exposed her blackened heart and corrupt ways. If Kim was going to prove that Princess Peach was unfit to be future queen, she would need the kingdom to be at peace before she exposed her crimes. She reached the courtyard and looked over the horizon to find the top of trees to her right. Kim ran for the woods, hoping that she could beat Mario and Luigi to the punch. She didn't see them at the meeting, so maybe they weren't there yet. She still had a chance.

Reaching the forest, Kim frantically searched for any suspicious looking features that didn't usually belong to the forest. She searched for the caped fellow that apparently gave the toads the shroom, planning on the confrontation she would have with him; Kim was very organized and wanted everything to go as plan. After about an hour of searching, she reached the lake and decided to get some water. Before she drank, she saw her reflection in the still lake. Her black hair was causing her skin to be more pale than normal, her choice of clothing could have been a bit less revealing as well. She wore a blood red sports bra and hipster sweatpants that flared at the bottom of her ankle. Her feet were bare, the ground was naturally soft, all over the kingdom, so Kim found herself forgetting shoes often.

After her short break, Kim resumed her search. Almost at the far end of the forest, Kim finally found a small cave with two giant pipes at the entrance. Above the cave entrance was a mushroom and a few smaller ones rotating ones underneath. _How peculiar. Never seen that before. _Kim stepped forward and saw the counter that was under the tray of moving mushrooms. Behind it was dark and shady, Kim could barely see any mushrooms in the back. _Someone set up shop here in Dimple Wood? Why? Maybe this is where the toads got the shrooms. _

"WELCOME," a voice behind Kim made her jump. She flipped her head around and found a short guy, about half her height, leaning on his tip-toes with a large smile on his shaded face. She quickly noticed that he was wearing a grey cape. _Is this the guy?_ "Welcome, oh traveler of long ways!"

"Wh-what?" Kim barely understood what he meant. "Hey there," she forced a fake smile and a weak wave.

"Might I be asking you what is bringing you to this cozy of the corners of the wood?"

"Uh," Kim swallowed her nervousness and straightened her posture, remember how to get information out of people who were hiding something. If this was truly the guy who feed the toads the shrooms, she'll make him tell her. "I'm a collector; of rare shrooms. I came here in order to find what some are calling Blorb Shrooms. Have you any idea where to find them?" Kim quickly lied through her smiled teeth.

"Mmm, Blorb Shrooms you say? Fawful has not heard of such fake shrooms! It gives him the chortles!" the little guy began to laugh, causing Kim to feel a bit uncomfortable.

"A little birdy told me that a shop in the wood carried them. And I was wondering if this was the shop-" Just as Kim was finishing her next lie, a large hand from within the darkness of the counter, reached out and grabbed her arm. It yanked her to the counter edge and forced her slam her head on the counter. Her vision became blurry and hazy.

"What little birdy has lied to you?" a different voice, a much deeper and threatening voice, demanded of her.

Through damaged eyes, Kim tried to face her attacker and said, "My sources never lie." After a few quick blinks, Kim was able to focus enough to see the man, more like creature, who had grabbed her. A pink pig-like creature had Kim by the forearm; he had a pig snout and round, dark eyes. Horns and tusks were poking out of his head and mouth. Spikes were trailing down his back and onto, what Kim assumed was, his tail. Kim could tell that what said had said made the creature frustrated and tightened his grip on her arm.

"You lie!" he shouted at her. Kim started to feel how strong this creature truly was and started to panic slightly. She tried to wriggle out of his massive hand, but he only applied, what felt like, bone breaking pressure. Kim fell to her knees and began biting her tongue to hold back a cry of pain.

"Now Midbus, a guest is she. Nice you must be."

When Fawful said that, Midbus let her go, causing Kim to crumple under the unexpected release. She unhinged her teeth from her tongue and gasped for air, while rubbing her nearly broken arm. Kim leaned under the counter and swore under her breath in pain.

"What the hell was that for?!"Kim shouted at the caped Fawful. "I asked a question!"

"Mmm, clever she is one. Knows of shrooms." Midbus leaned over the counter and glared at Kim, as if warning her. "Dangerous?"

"Knowing too much already she does. I say, YES!" Kim widened her eyes, afraid of what the could have in store of her.

Fawful reached in his cape and pulled out a laser gun-looking device. He pointed it at her, causing her to shiver, and squeezed the trigger. Midbus laughed as pink circle rays flashed towards her from the device. Kim wasn't fast enough to move out of the way, so she got hit by them. Almost immediately, she body became limp and fell over to one side. Her blurry vision now became dark and her eye lids were getting difficult to keep open. Her body fell asleep and only her mind was keeping her awake. She could barely tell that the two were speaking while this was occurring. She heard Fawful mention about locking her up until the plan was complete, then Midbus could have her as a pet. Within a few more pink circles, Kim had fallen under the spell of sleep, but not before she frightened her heart of what he would break which limb while she slept.


	2. Chapter 2

With a groggy head, that definitely felt like a hang over, Kim opened her eyes and found darkness. Her blue eyes darted across the landscape, which proved to be black. She didn't know where she was, but that wasn't going to stop her from figuring it out; simple darkness did not frighten her. Kim pushed off of the cold concrete and sat upright. She immediately knew something was wrong with the weight of her upper body; something was wrong. To investigate, she felt the op of her head, then forehead, nose, mouth, and finally her neck. Instead of feeling her skin, she felt cold metal around her neck. A chain clasp was locked around her neck, along with a chain to keep her tied down to the floor. She followed the chain and determined it was quite long and hastily placed on the ground. It was attached to a metal plate on the ground, but as her vision was returning to her, Kim could start seeing selves of odd looking mushrooms.

She stood up, fighting with the chain the entire time, and as quietly as she could manage with the noisy chains behind her, Kim explored her prison. She walked a little ways and found the entrance to the cave that she was before. The counter was the only source of light, which was easing the pressure on her weak eyes._ They must've put me behind that counter, _Kim realized. _A storage room, for all the Blorb Shrooms. But where are those two weird guys?_ Further behind the counter was a table that was housing a cluster of messy papers. She tried to walk to it, but was tugged by the chains. _This is going to get irritating. _Kim knew that fighting the chains would prove useless, so the only option would to be breaking it.

After searching and practically destroying the storage room where she could reach, Kim found some useful tools that she could unhinge one of the chains and just carry the clasp around her neck. First, she tried to undo the lock on her neck, but it was too complex for her, especially since she couldn't see anything. Second, she tried a few chains down from her neck, but they were welded on tight. She moved down the chain, hoping for a weak link. The only link that looked able to break was the one welded onto the metal plate on the concrete. Using the hammer she found, Kim attempted to smash it apart. It didn't break, but instead it began chipping away. Kim finally used a flat head screwdriver to dig in the metal and pry the to chips away from each other. Finally, she was free...in a sense. The clasp was still around her neck and she had to lug the chains with her until she could find someone to help her. But, it was a start.

_Now, what's at that table?_ Kim gathered the chains in her arms and adjusted her stepping to walk over to the table. She got behind it and simply dropped the onto the floor. With the help of the sunlight from the counter, Kim was able to figure out, not by knowing how to read and comprehend what the words were saying, but by understanding the way of the kingdom, that were were planning something at Cavi Cape. Reluctantly, she knew that she would have to travel through Plack Beach and Bumpsy Plains to get there. _No pain, no gain, right? _So she gathered her chains in her arms and climbed over the counter to fully escape. Whatever was happening at Cavi Cape, Kim just hoped there was a clue as to where they would be going next. The last thing she wanted was confrontation, especially with Midbus, that brute; her arm still ached from before she was forced asleep.

The journey was long and uneventful, but Kim definitely got a great work out for her arms. She finally reached Bumpsy Plains where she saw Fawful, changed, but she could tell it was still him, on a small hovering craft. _Well, that technology doesn't exist here._ Instead of jumping him, Kim hid before peaks of hills and bushes; primarily, she was too afraid to run into Midbus again if she attempt to attack his boss. She followed him, to the best of her ability with that loud clang of her chains in her arms. At the peak of the highest plain, and right at the entrance to Cavi Cape, Kim lost him. So she decided to take a quick break, giving her weak legs and sore arms a rest. She sat behind a bush by the entrance and sighed, still praying that there was some sort of clue as to where or what that awkward duo would be up to. _Cavi Cape is so out of the way, why would they come here?_

Just then, from inside, Kim heard something; heavy footsteps walking towards her. She immediately thought of Midbus and pushed herself against the wall and bush. _Maybe he won't see me,_ she prayed. Suddenly, a figure appeared; and it wasn't Midbus. Instead, it was the great Koopa King, Bowser himself. Kim definitely knew about him, and his many attempts to steal the princess (which, she couldn't understand why since she's so corrupt and self-centered) and being fouled by Mario all the time. She felt bad for him, maybe he just wanted a friend? But still, he wasn't Prince Charming either. He had attacked kingdoms and stole gold to get where he was today, but at least he wasn't stealing coins from his people; at least he was honest about his actions.

And now, he was standing within feet of her. Kim covered her mouth and nose, to prevent him hearing her breathing. As soon as he was outside, Fawful showed himself. He used his hovering craft to become taller than the Koopa King. They began talking.

"What is your surprise face? Was there forgetting about me?" Fawful said.

"Wait, I know you! You're the weirdo who tricked me into eating that mushroom!" Bowser suddenly realized.

Fawful moved with his hover craft to move to a new angel. "You are the one who is correct! Wasn't it full of delicious?! Such a special treat called a Vacuum Shroom! I, Fawful, invented it to make you inhale everything you see!" He moved behind Bowser; why he kept moving around while talking to Bowser was something Kim would never know. "And I, Fawful, am betting that you are remembering nothing. You inhaled like a hungry syrup pig at the free pancake buffet. And then you had the napping. And then I put you in the cave!"

"WHAAAAT?!" Bowser shouted, clearly upset that Fawful had done something to him. He clenched his fists and began grinned his teeth, making Kim thankful that she wasn't confronting him. "What's your problem, pal? What's your beef with me?"

"Beef? I am lacking in beef. Fawful in beefless. But I am having a goal!" Fawful moved to the original starting point and shouted, "Mushroom Kingdom...WILL BE MINE! Al of Mushroom Kingdom spread for Fawful like power brunch! First, the appetizer of making Toads round with the blorbs! Then, the side order of using Vacuum-Shroomed Bowser! Fawful is gorging on his plan of win! And still he has hunger!"

"You're nuts!"

"No hunger for nuts. Just to conquer Mushroom Kingdom... First, the emptying of the castle of Peach! AND THEN! Andthenandthenandthenandthenandthen!" He spun around Bowser, as though he was some excited child. "The castle of Bowser for me! I will be powering it up into the castle of Fawful!"

"Woah, hold up, champ! What about my castle?! Pffffft. Please! Get over yourself! My castle's gonna be just fine, pal." Somehow, Kim doubted that.

Fawful moved so he was in front of Bowser and the entrance to the cave. "Hmm... We will be seeing... Anyway, I thought you would be sleeping long, like a lazy bear. And I am thinking you should be sleeping more! Come! Midbus!"

Kim felt her heart drop. _Oh no, not him._ She braced herself and adjusted her footing.

Fawful used his hover craft to hover away. Bowser was not pleased with this.

"Hey! HEY! COME BACK! I'm not done with you!" He tried to chase after him, but Midbus pushed him back. Kim flinched, getting painful memories back. She might have acted tough, but she was, and is, scared out of her mind.

"You. No longer needed. Here, you taste defeat." Kim hoped that Bowser would beat the hell out of him.

"Taste defeat? You're gonna taste my fist, you little piglet!"

"Taste your fist? Ha ha. I think not. I HAVE NO TASTE!"

"That doesn't even make sense!" Bowser clenched his fists again and bared his teeth at Midbus, giving him visual representation that he was getting frustrated.

"Sense is for the weak! You listen. Peach, gone. Lord Fawful, new ruler. Now, no need of you. Lord Fawful says sleep. NOW YOU SLEEP!"

"GAAAAAAAAAAH!What is WRONG with you?! Nothing you say makes sense! And now you made me mad! And once I get mad, I need to punch something! C'MERE!"

And then the two brutes started fighting. Throwing punches and acting completely uncivilized. Although, Kim couldn't help but cheer for Bowser to win, only to teach that buff coward, Midbus, a lesson for pinning her down and imprisoning her. The fight wasn't exactly long, but Bowser did get in a few hits. Suddenly, Midbus body-slammed Bowser and just like that, the scrap between them was over.

"That weird mushroom is making me feel cruddy... Can't win like this..."

"Muh muh muh. You are weak. Most weak." Midbus laughed at him, crossing his arms in victory. Kim felt as though he would come after her next, even though he had no way of knowing she was there.

"What...How..."

"It does not end here. Work on your skills." And with that, Midbus left, following Fawful down the plains. Kim watched in horror as her fear walked away from the one person, koopa, that could actually stand a chance to lay down some punches. Now, she had to be careful about Midbus hulking around, especially since she just escaped from his capture.

Kim, absolutely terrified, looked at Bowser, who seemed to be yelling at his stomach. Kim regathered her chains and climbed out of the bush, cautious of the shouting koopa. She stepped closer to him, but not too close, despite him not fighting every well, he could easily knock her out with his massive muscles. As she approached, she stepped lightly and slowly, almost like she was approaching a vicious lion.

"Hey there," she called to him. Bowser suddenly stopped talking and looked at her, quite confused as to where she had appeared from. "Hi, I'm Kim," she introduced herself carefully, still scared of his power.

"Where did you come from?" he asked her.

"Ah, I was hiding in that bush," she turned around and pointed with her finger. She dropped the chains and continued to explain herself. "I was hiding."

"Hiding? Hiding from what?"

"Well, primarily that Midbus guy; he sorta put this damn chain on me." Kim laughed at her situation, but she still didn't feel very comfortable around a loose canon like the koopa king.

"I hate that guy," Bowser muttered under his breath, still clenching his fists. Before Kim could ask him to snap the clasp around her neck, Bowser asked her another question. "Why did that creep put that chain on you?"

"Ha ha," Kim nervously laughed, embarrassed that she was so easily overpowered, "It's a bit of a long story. See, I'm a P.I.-" Bowser gave her a quizzical look, "- a private investigator-" his facial expression remained unchanged, "-a spy."

"A spy?! Why didn't you say that in the first place?"

"Well, because I'm really not a spy," Kim muttered, but still uneasy of his presence. "Anyways, I was wondering if you-"

"Were you spying on me?" Bowser glared at her, causing shivers to trickle down her back.

"No! Not at all! I was actually following Fawful and his lacky."

"Is that why that creep put that chain on you?"

Kim sighed, obviously not making much progress with her request to free her, so she answered his question, "Yes, that's why he locked me up."

"Hmm..." she could tell that he was thinking of something because he crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "What would happen if I had a spy..." she heard him mutter. _Oh no, I shouldn't have said 'spy.'_

"Hey, Bowser, I hate to ask, but could you break this clasp around my neck?"

"Hmm..." he continued to think, with each passing moment drawing Kim's patience to an end. She couldn't be impatient with him, because he could snap her in half, but she was in a hurry to be free and chase down Fawful and Midbus, especially since they want to take over the Mushroom Kingdom. "I've got it!" he clapped his hands together and smiled, consequently scaring Kim. "I'll make you my minion! My first ever spy!"

"What." Kim's eye widened as she never would have expected him to make her his minion. She was hoping that he would simply free her, but now she was stuck with a stubborn king and his stupid idea. "No no no, I didn't mean to be anyone's minion, but for you to get the clasp off."

"It's settled, you are now my spy minion." Bowser picked up the chains at Kim's feet.

"Woah, woah, hold up. I'm not really a spy." Kim tried to explain the difference between being a P.I. and a spy.

"Well, you're already my minion so you better become a spy pretty quick," Bowser shrugged it off and began walking away with the other end of Kim's chains in his hand.

"Wait, where are you going?" Kim didn't move but called after her apparent new "master."

"That creep Fawful said he was going to my castle, I'm going to make sure he doesn't do anything to it." He kept walking down the plains. Kim was reluctant to go, but soon the chains tugged and she was forced to follow after the Koopa King.


	3. Chapter 3

As Bowser spent time attacking large, fat goombas with giant lollipops, Kim sat on a rock with her loose end of the chain stuck underneath. She fiddled with the clasp around her neck and once that proved to be pointless, she began braiding her hair. It seemed like after every battle, Bowser would roar in triumphant victory. At first it scared her, but she soon realized that it was done out of habit. After Bowser had his fill of beating up Fawful's extra fat goombas, he stretched his arms and snapped his fingers, giving Kim the impression that he was only getting started. Kim sighed, foreshadowing that it was going to be a long day. He walked over to her as she jumped off of the rock. "Done already?"

"Hppf, doubting my abilities?" He puffed out his chest to display his muscles.

_If you're so great, why couldn't you beat down Midbus?_ Kim wanted to ask that, but she feared the consequences. Instead she asked, "Off to your castle, your highness?"

"There isn't anyone else here for my to defeat, so yeah." Bowser lifted the rock and retrieved Kim's other end of chains then dropped the heavy rock onto the ground.

"I don't know why you enjoy fighting people so much," Kim thought out loud by mistake.

"Hey!" Bowser tugged at her chain to get her attention and lock eyes with her; despite her calm exterior, her heart was racing a mile a minute. "You should of heard what the creep, Midbus, said to me, 'Hone your skills.' So, that's what I plan to do!"

She took a moment to stare in Bowser's deep eyes before answering, "Okay, hone your skills if you want."

"Hpff, that's what I thought," Bowser leaned away from Kim and straightened himself out; Kim let out a breathe of minor frustration. All she wanted to do was reveal what Princess Peach was doing to her lovely kingdom, instead she gets to be dragged around by the Koopa King. She was always a patient person, especially in her profession, but this was getting ridiculous. When was she going to get her chance to expose the princess' fraud and selfish ways? Kim was starting to get impatient with the Koopa King and his narrow views. However, she couldn't openly voice her opinions; considering she was his "minion" now. _We should head to Peach's Castle and stop Fawful from taking over, not his home to make sure nothing's happened to it. This is all pointless._ Kim kept her thoughts to herself, knowing only too well what kind of power Bowser was wielding.

This time, Bowser didn't have to pull on the chains to get Kim walking with him. He didn't notice the change in her morale, but Kim was about to do anything so she could save the kingdom. As they walked down the plains and away from Cavi Cape Cave, Kim began wondering when Mario and Luigi would make an appearance. _Everyone seems to hate Bowser, so where are the Bro's? Why aren't they stopping Fawful?_ Again, Kim was getting impatient with the whole situation, and began missing the United States; slaves or minions were banned from there, so was royalty.

They reached the connecting tunnel that connected Blubble Lake, Plack Beack and the Bumpsy Plains. Bowser's castle was apparently away from Blubble Lake, so he led her to a the entrance to Plack Beach. _I'm practically retracing my steps. _The cool sand between Kim's toes helped her relax for a moment and forget everything; but only for a short moment. Bowser grew impatient and tugged at her neck chain, causing her to drift back to reality and her uncomfortable situation with the clasp around her neck.

"Hey! Quit daydreaming! You're on my time now," he growled at her.

"What? I'm getting paid for this?" Kim replied while stepping closer to him.

Before he could say anything, someone in the distance called out to them. They both blinked at each other and scanned the surrounding area to see who was yelling for them. Kim pointed at a small island near the beach that housed a box-like fellow on it. He was waving his arms frantically, attempting to get their attention. The two couldn't quite hear what he was saying, so they walked to where a thick piece of rope was laying on the sand.

"Ah! Allo over zere! Monsieur Turtle Bits!" Bowser and Kim looked over at the French fellow, which Kim had no idea could be possible in this world. "Ah, sweet monsieur! 'Elp me! I need 'elp! Helpez-moi, s'il vous plait!"

"Huh? What language is that?"

"It's French," Kim answered him; he gave her a look as if telling her to shut up.

"What are you doing there?"

"Ah! Bonjour! Why are you... Non! I am too rude! I am Broque Monsieur! I ask zat you look upon zis! I was cleaning zee collection, but... Disaster, it struck moi! Zee bridge to zee beach, it fell into zee water!" That was when Kim realized that large pieces of wood were floating in the water in between the beach and the island. "Monsieur! You 'ave zee odor of a gentleman! Ah, oui! It wafts! And a gentleman 'elps zee needy! Surely you 'ave zis credo, oui?"

Bowser laughed at Broque's request; Kim couldn't help but giggle at Broque's odd way of calling the Koopa King a gentleman. "Whatever you're smelling isn't me, pal! I don't do charity! I'm too busy for this!" Bowser smirked and began walking away, but Kim felt terrible for leaving him just sitting on the island with his collection of boxes. But, she was "Bowser's minion," and she doubted she could convince him to help Broque.

"STOP, I AM BEGGIN YOU! Good Monsieur Turtle Bots! You who I am not smelling!"

Bowser stopped and turned back. "Enough with the yelling! Why would I help you?"

"But 'ow can you say zis thing? You 'ave very much to gain! I will give you zee gratitudes!"

"What? Gratitudes?"

"I think he means he'll give you something," Kim clarified.

"Ah! You interest, it piques? Zis is wonderful! Marvelous! Oui, a hot block spirit dwells in you, Monsieur Turtle Bits! A blazing, fiery block spirit... Oui. You 'ave zee power... Look upon this!" Broque held out a strange block with what looked like a small sideways tornado. "How is zis for gratitudes, honh? I give zis glorious thing! Zee hot block spirit cries out from your belly, and it cries for zis block! It is born for you!"

"What is wrong with you... It's just a stupid block!"

"No, wait, I think he's on to something," Kim told her master; he looked at her and rolled his eyes.

"Ah! Your tongue, bite upon it! Zis block is manifique! Do not utter one ill word to zis block! Zee block collectors, zey pay one million coins for zis, honh? It is so very rare, oui! You will know zis if you hit it! Oui, you will be in for zee big surprises, Monsieur Turtle Bits!"

"Hmmm... Surprises, huh..."

"Surprises are always fun," Kim smiled, trying to further convince Bowser to help poor Broque.

"Fine... What do I do?"

"Ah! Thank you! Merci! You are a gentleman, apres all! You see zis rope on zee beach? If you are to pull on zis, you will movez zee entire island!"

Kim noticed that the rope was still attached to the island where Broque was. "He expects you to be strong enough to pull the island back ashore?"

"Pbbth! Just pull the rope? Gimme a challenge, pal!" Bowser threw Kim's loose end of chain onto the sand behind him and picked up the rope. As Kim chased after her chain, she saw that he was beginning to pull the rope with all his might. "Have a taste of Bowser power!" Instead of running away with the chain in hand, Kim was watching Bowser pull at the rope. For some reason, she couldn't bring herself to leave the muscle oaf. She stood and watched as his posture changed while he was pulling the rope, seeing his arms contracting. All of a sudden, with some sort of extra strength, Bowser was able to actually pull the island back. Kim flinched as the island made contact with the beach and Broque went flying over Bowser's head. His collection on blocks also went scattering on the beach and palm trees.

"OH YEAH! FEEL IT!" Kim stood in awe as she processed what had just happened. _How in the hell did he do that?!_ She stared at Bowser, wondering how he had managed to actually pull an island back ashore with just his muscles. _Where was this strength when he was fighting Midbus? _Kim didn't understand where this extra power came from, but it terrified her.


	4. Chapter 4

The chained "minion spy" sat on sand, making small piles of sand higher and higher as Bowser learned how to use the new block he obtained from Broque. She thought it was childish with all of the fighting, but after Bowser displayed hs incredible strength to pull the island back ashore, she didn't dare speak out of turn again.

"Ah, how was zis? Nice, honh? Zee magnificent Vacuum Block! Zee color! Zee gloss! Zee feel! We are not worthy of zis block! Who dares say zis is not so? And you, Monsieur Turtle Bits, you become a block collector after seeing zis block, oui? Alors, let us meet again, honh? Until zen, good-byes to you!" Broque waved his hand and walked away, practically ignoring Kim. She stood up and picked up her chains, stepping to Bowser, who seemed to be extremely pleased with his new ability in battle.

"He seemed like a nice fellow," she said, keeping her distance from the Koopa King.

"Yeah, nice enough to give me that awesome block!" he laughed full-heartily, causing Kim to smile and give a weak smile.

The two walked along the beach, with Bowser beating up multiple tooth creatures that Bowser gave the name of Toothy, and Kim found herself hopelessly fiddling with the clasp around her neck. Apparently Bowser had trusted her enough to not link the chain to anything so she wouldn't escape; either that or he was just enjoying himself too much to pin her on some giant rock again. Which ever one was fine for her. After he defeated the Toothy's, Bowser dusted his hands off and looked at Kim.

"You're still there?"

"Well, yeah. Where else am I going to go?" Kim shrugged her shoulders, masking her frightened state. In reality, she could have run to Dimple Wood and to her camp site, but she wasn't much for the reckless risks. If he followed her, then he could find out her secret to traveling in between her world and the Mushroom Kingdom. So, it was best to just play along with the whole "minion" thing.

"Hppt, good point. I guess you figured that being my minion has it's perks." he laughed again while walking to her.

"I definitely get paid more," she muttered under her breath, joking at her new salary.

Bowser didn't hear her but instead grabbed her chains and led her up a small hill with two torches burning at the top.

"Hey! What's this thing?" Bowser walked to a weird looking statue with a Blooper on the top and two pipes poking out of each side. Kim remembered reading about a statue on the beach somewhere before.

"It might be the Sea Pipe Statue," she said walking freely around the stone craving.

"Sounds dumb. What is it?"

"I think it honors a hero of the sea."

"Ah, a hero, huh? So that means... I'm the model!" Bowser laughed at his apparent funny realization. Kim raised an eyebrow at her master and shook her head in denial. _You are not a hero of sea... nor a hero period._ Kim bitterly thought to herself.

He looked at the statue and shouted, "HEY! IT'S UGLY!" He immediately started punching the statue.

"What are you doing!? Don't punch it!" Kim grabbed his large hand and held it back. They stared at each other, Bowser with an angry stare while Kim was trying to convey a stare of pleading. Her message got through; he dropped his hand and crossed his arms.

"Hmph! My eyes are much more manly than that!" Behind them, the statue began to shake. The two backed away from the statue, Kim taking one less step back than Bowser. "Whoa! This thing is moving!"

"I'm no architect, but I know that statues aren't supposed to move," Kim stepped towards the shaking statue. Her timing was perfect, as her hand touched the base of the statue, it froze. She stared at it in awe and inched forward. She peeked into one of the pipes at the side. Just then, a bright light came from the base and the statue moved again. The pipe smacked Kim in the chin, making her fly across the hill. She landed on her back and slid a little ways. Kim heard a familar voice along with Bowser shouting at someone.

"Look, pal, I can tell you wanna fight, but I'm in no mood." was all Kim could make out before her head became heavy and her eyes began spinning. Concentrating was proving to be too difficult, so she rested her head on the sand and watched the sky spin above her. Although her vision was playing mind games with her, Kim could still hear Bowser throwing punches and growling when the statue had hit him.

The next time she awoke was when the sun had completely set. The sky was dark and stars were shinning brightly in the distance. Kim rolled herself over and was welcomed by a warming fire. She blinked away the darkness and focused on the fire. Across the roaring flame, Kim found Bowser sitting with his arms crossed. His eyes were closed, as if he was annoyed, and his right index finger was tapping against his arm. "About time you woke up."

"Was I really out that long?"

"Long enough! Now that creep Fawful could have done anything to my castle," Bowser glared at Kim, blaming her.

"Hey, it's not my fault. Why didn't you just carry me?"

"Ppphhtt, as if I would carry one of my minions," he snickered.

"Then why not just leave me?"

"Mmm," he sat and thought about her question. Then her master answered, "Because I didn't want you to run away, how would I know if you would've gone to my castle?"

Kim was slightly impressed that he didn't just demand her to be silent. The fact that she actually got an answer from The Koopa King must have been some time of progress. "Well, thanks, I think."

"Yeah yeah yeah, so you ready to leave yet?"

"Leave? At night? Isn't it dangerous?"

Bowser laughed at her and pushed himself upright. "Girly, I am what's dangerous at night."

Kim wobbled her way to stand as Bowser kicked dry sand on the fire. "Did you start that fire?"

"Of course! I got my flame back, baby!" he let out a roar of satisfaction and laughed. Kim gave a weak smile as she gathered up her chains and handed the end to Bowser. He was surprised that she did this, so he looked at her for a moment before taking the chain.

Kim stared back at him, "I'm just done fighting with you about it, so just take the damn thing."

"You learn fast who's boss, good."

_How could I not know it was you?_ In the darkness, Bowser led Kim away from the Sea Pipe Statue and into a different section of the beach.


End file.
